Made In Britain (1982)

Made In Britain was a television film, which was part of a series. It is notable for its unflinching and shocking portrait of a 16 year old Neo-Nazi, an anarchist who cares for nothing and no-one. Trevor is racist – at the beginning of the film he is in Court for throwing a brick through a Pakistani man’s window – has respect for nobody and nothing, and routinely causes criminal damage for the fun of it. The film is also notable because it features the screen acting debut of Tim Roth. Looking back now, it is no surprise that Roth is considered one of Britain’s best and most versatile actors, but at the time, he was an unknown – albeit an unknown who blasted onto TV screens and blew the audience away with how good he was in the role of Trevor.

The story is bleak – Trevor has no real future other than one behind bars; he knows it, the staff at the Residential Assessment Centre he is sent to know it, and he has no desire to change things for himself. As I may have mentioned before, I adore Tim Roth – I think he is fantastic in everything and makes any film worth watching. The beauty of his performance here is that even watching it today when he is well known, Roth disappears and all you can see is Trevor. Such is the brilliance of his performance.

The thing about this film is – although the main character is despicable, although he rejects any and all help which is offered to him, even though he commits some awful crimes and drags his room-mate Errol down with him – it’s also clear that Trevor is bright, he can see through people’s words and motives and his intelligence frustrates those who would try to discipline him.

Fair warning – the film features a LOT of swearing, some revolting attitudes and plenty of aggression. If you don’t like the idea of it, then definitely avoid watching Made In Britain. But if you do choose to watch it, it will be hard not to be drawn in, not to watch in horror and resignation, and even not to root for Trevor to find some kind of redemption. 30+ years has not lessened the impact of this film. I highly recommend it.